Johns Hopkins epidemiologist named Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine

Frederick L. Brancati, M.D., M.H.S., professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and director of Hopkins' division of general internal medicine, was named Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine by the Johns Hopkins University Board of Trustees.

This high honor is bestowed upon a few select senior faculty members to recognize their exemplary service to the institution.

In a letter to Brancati informing him of his honor, Myron L. Weisfeldt, M.D., director of Johns Hopkins' Department of Medicine, said: "This appointment reflects on your tremendous ongoing contributions to human health in areas of diabetes mellitus, obesity and cardiovascular disease manifestations. Your leadership and mentoring of young faculty and the quality of your leadership of your division were also part of the reasons for this appointment and recognition."

Brancati, 52, came to Johns Hopkins in 1989 after earning degrees from Harvard and Columbia universities and completing medical residency at the University of Pittsburgh. He has directed the division of general internal medicine since 2004. He also holds joint appointments in the departments of epidemiology and oncology and the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

Brancati is an internationally recognized expert on the epidemiology and prevention of type 2 diabetes and related conditions. He is the author of more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific papers. He has won numerous teaching and mentoring awards from medical students, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows at Hopkins, including the Advising, Mentoring & Teaching Recognition Award from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the David M. Levine Mentorship Award from the department of medicine.

Just last year, Brancati won the prestigious Kelly West Award for Outstanding Achievement in Epidemiology from the American Diabetes Association and the Chief of the Year Award from the Association of Chiefs and Leaders in General Internal Medicine. He is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha and Delta Omega Honor Societies, the American Society for Clinical Investigation, and the Association of American Physicians.

In one of his most recent roles — as executive medical director Business Development and Strategic Alliances division — Brancati represents the faculty perspective on Hopkins' new business initiatives and provides oversight and direction related to academic elements of business development.